Creating a fair and just workplace

I feel extremely privileged to have had the opportunities in life which have allowed me to become Chief Operating Officer for DIO – a job I love.

It goes without saying that we in DIO need to work together to create a fair and just workplace, where discrimination and poor behaviour is not tolerated. In recent years I have become personally much more aware of the unconscious bias and resulting inequality of opportunity built into so many aspects of our society. I think at its heart this stems from good people who don’t fully understand the things we have not experienced ourselves. Curiosity and an open mind are vital if we are to combat this.

I want the organisation to be outstanding and I want everyone who works here to feel that they have contributed to and benefited from that success. I believe that work should be fulfilling and rewarding, it should help us to grow and to feel a sense of belonging and achievement. Everyone should feel safe to ‘bring their whole selves’ to work and not feel that they have to pretend to be something they are not to fit in. Everyone should also be supported to develop themselves and their career to enable them to reach their full potential.

I hope that as Chair of the DIO Diversity and Inclusion Steering Group I will be able to help and support the community of dedicated people involved in our diversity and inclusion networks and fora to build on the excellent work they have already done.

The networks represent a broad range of protected characteristics; race, sexual orientation, disability, faith and belief, gender and social mobility. Each aims to raise awareness and understanding of their experiences and to encourage us all to be thoughtful and conscious. They share a genuine sense of caring for the people around them and a desire to build a DIO community where everyone feels welcome. The work of the individual networks is impressive and it’s brilliant seeing the way they support each other and work together on common issues.

I commit to working actively to better understand the people around me to help create a community within DIO where everyone feels they belong.